The present invention generally concerns storage and dispensing apparatus for particulate matter, and more particularly to a convenient bin for storing dog food with a manually operated dispensing control apparatus for initiating and regulating flow of dog food from the bin into a container from which it can be conveniently consumed by a dog.
Recent years have witnessed the increasing popularity of commercially prepared dog food in pellet or granular form for consumption by dogs. These dog food products have been particularly popular in urban and suburban areas where dogs do not have access to natural foods, and their popularity has been spurred by the rapidly increasing cost of food prepared for human consumption which in the past was frequently fed to dogs by their owners either in the form of table scraps or as prepared by the food processors.
The most convenient and least expensive means of packaging, shipping, and storing these pellet and granular dog food products is in paper or fabric sacks or bags of various sizes capable of holding contents ranging from 5 lbs. to 100 lbs. Dog food purchased in the larger sacks or bags usually costs less per unit of weight than dog food purchased in smaller containers; however, the larger sacks are more difficult to handle and they require a relatively large space for storage which oftentimes is not available in a dog owner's home at a location convenient for access. Consequently, there has been a growing need for a bulk dog food storage and dispensing device which is compact and can be located at a place which is relatively out of the way, yet convenient to use, and from which dog food can be easily and conveniently removed in small quantities without the necessity of manipulating heavy sacks or bags each time the dog is to be fed.